


One Last Chance

by gayapollo



Category: Final Fantasy XV
Genre: Alcohol, Coming Out, Drama, Friends to Lovers, Humor, M/M, Slow Burn, gonna add more tags later this is still a big WIP, prompto has a cat because I Say So, this takes place before the game
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-06-19
Updated: 2020-10-28
Packaged: 2021-03-04 03:21:20
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 4
Words: 12,763
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24796864
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/gayapollo/pseuds/gayapollo
Summary: Prompto has feelings and he's not quite sure how to deal with them.
Relationships: Prompto Argentum/Noctis Lucis Caelum
Comments: 7
Kudos: 38





	1. Searching For Answers at the Bottom of a Red Solo Cup

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> thx to my friend jordan for proofreading this for me despite not knowing anything about ffxv xoxoxo

It was hard to believe senior year could go by so fast.  
  
All those hours of studying, the borderline failing-grades, the lunchroom drama… thinking back on it was almost bittersweet.  
  
Prompto had made some friends— or, well, three of them, at least. He had also learned some things about himself that… definitely made sense, (Who knew it _wasn’t_ normal for your heart to race whenever you saw your best friend?) and not to mention, he somehow landed himself a seat at one of the better colleges in Insomnia.  
  
The ring of his phone alarm snapped him out of his thoughts. Right, he had to get ready.  
  
Prompto stood in front of his bathroom mirror, looking himself over one last time. There was a lock of hair that refused to cooperate, but after wrestling with it for well over ten minutes, he had decided to just give up and secured it with a hair clip instead. It seemed as though nothing was going his way today. First his tie that he had spent way too long trying to get right, now his hair… It’s as if the Astrals were telling him to stay home, that going to prom was a bad idea, and Prompto would’ve agreed- had his parents not bought him a nice new suit specifically for the occasion. He tugged on his sleeves as he mulled over the decision one last time before deciding it would be a waste not to go. Sure Noctis wouldn’t be there, but he could at least try and make the most of it anyway.

Prompto flipped the light switch off as he turned to leave and grabbed his keys off the kitchen counter.  
  
“Take care of the house while I’m gone, okay, Pochi?” Prompto said to the calico cat who laid sprawled out on the opposite side of the table and responded with a small ‘mrrow!’ Pochi wasn’t his cat, rather, a stray that happened to freeload at the house at times. Prompto didn’t mind much, it was nice to have some kinda company when his parents weren’t around.  
  
After making sure the house was in good hands, he locked the door and left.  
  
By the time he arrived at the building, things were already in full swing, hopefully he didn’t end up missing too much. The moment Prompto entered, he was greeted by music that was way too loud, lights that were way too bright, and more people than he felt comfortable around. It was all a bit overwhelming to be honest.

Prompto made his way over to a semi-empty area towards the back and stood by awkwardly as he glanced around. There were a handful of people he knew— mostly from his past classes— but no one he had really talked to more than a couple of times. It probably wouldn’t hurt to try and squeeze himself into a conversation, but—

His thoughts were quickly interrupted when a vaguely familiar looking guy elbowed him in the side.  
  
“Yo! Prompto, right? Argentum? We sat next to each other in chem?”

“O-oh! Yeah, I remember you.” He really didn’t, but it felt easier to lie at this point.  
  
“Hah! Thought I recognized ya’. How are you liking the party so far?”  
  
Prompto just shrugged, “s’alright.” Seriously, couldn’t this guy take a hint that he wasn’t interested in talking?

The conversation went on for… honestly, Prompto couldn’t tell how long, he really wasn’t paying attention to whatever his former classmate was saying, and just nodded along whilst giving half-assed responses. What could he say to speed things up?

“I uh, gotta use the bathroom.” Prompto finally said, cutting the other off.

“Oh! Alright, alright, cool. Well, it was nice seeing ya, man! And hey, you seem tense, have a drink and loosen up a bit!”  
  
“W-wait, I don’t—“ Before Prompto could protest, a red solo-cup filled with liquid was thrust into his hand, and his classmate was now nowhere to be seen, “—drink…” Ah, too late now.

He gazed into the cup, its contents a pale yellow with a white foam. Beer, probably. He brought the cup to his nose and took a whiff. Yeah, definitely beer. Where did they even get this stuff? Weren’t there supposed to be chaperones?  
  
Whatever. Might as well, it was a party after all. He moved the plastic cup to his lips, tipping it slightly, just to get a taste. It was a bit bitter, the yeastiness perfumed his nose and left a sour taste on his tongue. All things considered though, it wasn’t that bad.  
  
The minutes ticked by and Prompto just stood in his corner, checking his phone as if that would somehow make time pass faster, but that only seemed to make things slow down. He glanced down at the cup in his hand, now wet with condensation. He brought it back up to his lips and as he tilted the cup back to take a more confident sip, a hand hit his shoulder from behind. “Gh—!” Fantastic! As if the night couldn’t get any worse, he went and got his nice suit all dirty…  
  
Prompto turned to face whoever hit him, more than just a bit teed off, “Hey, what the h—” He froze. “Noct?! Holy shit!” Suddenly, any anger he had disappeared and his heart began to race as his best friend went in for a one-arm hug. “What are you doing here, I thought you had a meeting with the counsel?”  
  
Noctis pulled back and laughed, “good to see you too. Ignis let me slip away. No way was I about to miss hanging out on prom night with ya!” He eyed the wet spot on Prompto’s suit jacket and bit his lip, “ah shit, did I do that? I’m sorry. I’ll pay for it to get cleaned, I promise-”  
  
Prompto quickly shook his head, “it's fine! I can probably wash it when I get home, it shouldn’t be too hard…”  
  
Noctis couldn’t help but feel guilty, he’d have to make it up to him somehow. He idly ran a hand through his hair as he tried to come up with a way to change the subject, “so… some party, huh? Didn’t think you’d like stuff like this.”  
  
“Can I be honest? I hate it. I swear I can feel my spinal cord vibrate with how loud this place is.” Prompto admitted and Noctis could only laugh in response.  
  
“Wanna go onto the roof? I saw a way up.”  
  
“Are we allowed to do that? Like, isn’t that trespassing?”  
  
“What are they gonna do, arrest me? I’m the prince.”

“Good point.”  
  
After another moment of convincing, Noctis finally managed to pull Prompto outside and up the fire escape in the back, the sound of the music slowly began getting drowned out by the sounds of their footsteps on the metal. When they finally reached the roof, the music was barely audible at this point and was a welcome change.  
  
Prompto set his partially empty cup on the railing and took a minute to take his suit jacket off. It was still wet, but hopefully it would dry at least somewhat while they were out here.  
  
For the next couple of minutes, neither of them said anything to each other, too preoccupied with the change in scenery to say anything. 

“So,” Noctis began, finally breaking the silence, “graduation’s next week.”

“Haha, yeah. Can’t believe we’re finally done…”

“Bet you’re excited to go off to college?”

“A-actually, I’m… thinking of taking a year off. I’m not really sure if it’s for me, y’know?”

“Really?” Noctis blinked in surprise, leaning on the railing beside him, “is something wrong? I remember you were really excited when the acceptance letter came in.”

“Yeah! I’m still excited, it’s just…” Prompto shrugged, “I dunno, it’s… kinda far, I’d have to live on campus… so that means I’ll be away from my parents, I wouldn’t be able to hang out with you or Gladio or Ignis either. You guys are my best friends, I don’t know if I can just leave that all behind.” He swiped a thumb along the corners of his eyes, wiping away the beginnings of tears and choked out a laugh, “it’s a really stupid reason, I know.”  
  
“That’s not stupid,” his friend reassured, resting a hand on his back, “it’s not like we’d suddenly stop being friends if you left. We could video chat while you’re there and hang out whenever you come back.”

“That’s the problem, I’m just… scared? Scared that you guys’ll forget about me and when I come back I’ll be all alone. Four years is a long time, Noct.”

“Hey, don’t say that.” Noctis frowned, “you’re my best friend, Prom, you really think I’d just forget about you like that?”

Prompto just shrugged, “I guess not.” _Oh, by the way Noct, I’m also stupid in love with you and I’m afraid I’m gonna lose you if I leave.  
_  
His eyes drifted over to the red solo cup he had set down earlier, hands cupping around it. The foam had since dispersed, but bubbles continued to slowly rise to the top, fizzle, and pop. His reflection, distorted in the amber colored liquid seemed to mirror his current feelings. Confused and foggy… what was he going to do?  
  
Prompto cleared his throat and shifted a bit closer to Noctis, lips parting ever so slightly as he was about to speak, “Noct, I—.. mm..” he gently swirled the cup in his hands and shook his head, “never mind, I forgot what I wanted to say:” 

Noctis tilted his head but then nodded in understanding, “well, let me know if you remember.”

Yeah, like he’d ever have the guts for that. Prompto’s reflection in the drink seemed almost offensive now, like it was mocking him— and then, it hit him. They didn’t call this stuff liquid courage for nothing, right?  
  
Prompto lifted the cup up to his lips, emptying it in just a few gulps, wiping his mouth with the

back of his hand afterwards. Alright, now was his chance, if he screwed up he could just blame it on the alcohol and then… yeah, this was a _great_ idea. 

Just as Prompto opened his mouth to speak, Noctis managed to chime in first. 

“Hey, wanna go grab a bite to eat? Dunno about you, but I’m starving and could really use a burger right about now.”  
  
“Oh uh, yeah, sure. Burger’s sound good.” Prompto nodded, watching in slight disappointment as his friend pulled away from the railing and towards the fire escape. 

He held his now empty cup in his hands, almost in a bit of a daze. 

“Hey! You coming or what?”

“Y-yeah! Sorry, coming.” Prompto shook his head, snapping out of whatever thought he had and placed the cup on the railing, only to accidentally place it too close to the edge. He watched as the cup tipped over and fell, landing with a far off sounding clatter on the street below. 

Maybe now just wasn’t the time. 

Prompto sighed and grabbed his suit jacket off the railing and hung it over one of his arms, slowly making his way down the fire escape to catch up with Noctis. 

The duo spoke about random things as they walked to the nearest fast food joint that still happened to be open, (which thankfully wasn’t too hard to do) and placed their orders. 

“Hey, are your parents home?” Noct asked as they wanted for their food, leaning against one of the counters. 

Prompto shook his head. “Nah, out on a business trip again.” 

“Can I come over then?”

Prompto gave a small laugh, “yeah, sure dude. Although, why does it matter that they’re gone? They don’t care when you come over.”

“Can’t stay up all night and play video games with them around.” Noctis nodded, grabbing the paper bag with their takeout as their number was called. 

“Ooh, good point!” Prompto chirped, nodding his head in agreement. 

“Well, what are we waiting for? You don’t wanna keep the future king waiting, do you?”

“Tch, future brat, maybe! But fine, race you there?”

“You bet!”

Maybe running all the way to Prompto’s place was a bad idea. By the time they finally got there, they were both gross, sticky, and sweaty, not to mention the formal attire they had on did little to help. Still, it was kinda fun anyway. 

“Phew.. hah… I think I beat you,” Prompto coughed, pulling his keys out to unlock the door. 

“N-no way, dude.” Noctis argued, elbowing his friend in the side.

He was definitely too tired to argue back, “ugh, fine. Can we call it a tie?” 

“Yeah, tie sounds good.”

Prompto turned the doorknob and stepped inside, kicking his shoes off lazily. “Hey Pochi,” he said, greeting the cat who had seemingly stayed in the same place the entire time he was gone. 

“Hey Pochi.” Noctis parroted, setting the takeout bag on the table and reaching out to pet the cat. “Didn’t realize your parents let her inside.”

“Ahh.. they kinda don’t, or, well, I’ve never asked. But hey, they’re not here and she behaves herself, so I don’t see an issue! Anyway, Noct! Quit stalling, it’s time for video games! You’re gonna lose anyway.”

“Oh yeah? Last I checked I was beating you, seven to five.”

“Mmm.. nope, don’t recall that!” Prompto placed his jacket on the table and swiped the bag, motioning with his head towards his room. 

Noctis rolled his eyes and followed along, “so, what do you wanna..” he trailed off as something else caught his attention, a well-loved looking chocobo plush on top of Prompto’s bed. “Is that… Holy crap, I can’t believe you still have this old thing.”

Prompto felt his cheeks burn at the comment and his heart began to race again. Normally he’d have put it away out of embarrassment prior to having company over, but considering this was a spur of the moment thing, he didn’t have the chance to. “Haaah, yeah, I guess it fell off my uh, shelf?” 

“It’s the one I won for you at the festival back in freshman year, isn’t it? Man, this sure brings back memories…” Noctis picked up the plush and held it up towards Prompto, “you still sleep with this?” Obviously he didn’t buy whatever Prompto said earlier. 

“...Maybe sometimes.” He paused, “...okay, you caught me. I sleep with it every night. It’s soft and cuddly, sue me!”

Noctis nodded and gently placed it back down, “that’s pretty cute, Prom.” 

He blushed, and glanced away, pretending to rummage through his pile of video games and dvds before picking one out. “This good?”

“Depends, can it be played while eating?” Noctis lifted up their takeout bag. 

“Right, right… movie first then?”

“Movie sounds good.”

Prompto picked himself up off the floor and headed over to his computer, searching through until he found something that seemed decent enough before taking a seat on his bed beside Noctis.

“What’s it about?” His friend asked, passing the bag over to Prompto.

“Dunno. Thought it looked good though.” He peered inside the bag and pulled out the first wrapped burger, peeling off the wrapping to check the contents. “Right, so… one deluxe cheeseburger for me…” He set it to the side and pulled out the second burger, “and one plain cheeseburger for his royal highness,”

Noct rolled his eyes at the comment and peeled back the wrapping to take a bite, “s’good.”

“I still can’t believe you eat those plain.” Prompto commented, taking a bite of his own burger, chewing, and swallowing before continuing to speak. “A slice of tomato or a leaf of lettuce isn’t gonna kill ya.”

“You’re starting to sound like Ignis right about now, always nagging about the fact that I have to eat my vegetables…”

“Well he’s kinda right, dude. I still don’t get why you don’t like _any_ , they taste good to me!”

“I’m not falling for your vegetable propaganda. Besides, I like fries. Potatoes are a vegetable.” Noctis reached over at the fry carton on Prompto’s lap, swiping one from it. 

“Potatoes are _not_ a veget— hey, those are mine! Yours are still in the bag, jerk!” 

Noctis hummed and stuck one end of the fry into his mouth anyway, tangling it teasingly, “come take it back then.”

Prompto blushed and shoved at him, “e-ew, gross. I don’t even want it anymore, you can have it.” He faked sticking his tongue out in disgust, then took another bite of his burger. What he wouldn’t have given to _actually_ be able to get that close to him… Had he actually done it, a few more centimeters and it would’ve been enough for a kiss— Argh! _No, stop thinking like that! He’s just a friend!_

...And yet he couldn’t get the thought out of his mind. 

“Prompto. Prompto. _Earth to Prom, can you hear me?”_ Noctis waved a hand in front of his friend’s face to try and get his attention.  
  
“Mm? Oh- sorry, I uh, zoned out a little.” Prompto said, clearing his throat.  
  
“I can see that.” Noctis rolled his eyes, “anyway, as I was asking, can I stay over? It’s getting kinda late and I _really_ don’t wanna head home.”  
  
This was probably a really, really bad idea, and yet…  
  
“Sure thing dude.” Prompto nodded, then paused, “...Is Ignis gonna be alright with this?”  
  
“He’s my royal adviser, not my mom. Besides, it’s not like I haven’t slept over before.”  
  
“Right, right.. Sorry, I dunno what's up with me today.”  
  
Noctis gave him a pat on the back as he pulled himself off the bed and began to undress, much to Prompto’s surprise.  
  
“W-wait wait wait— what are you doing?”  
  
“...Taking my clothes off? I wanna take a shower. I’m still gross and sweaty from our run here.”  
  
“A-ah, right.” Prompto rubbed the back of his neck, turning away to try and hide the blush on his face, “so _that’s_ why it stinks in here.”  
  
Noctis retaliated by throwing his dress shirt at Prompto’s face. “Tch! You don’t smell any better.”  
  
“Yeah, well, hurry up so I can shower next!”  
  
As soon as Noct left, Pochi scurried in to take his place on the bed.  
  
“Hey, Pochi.” Prompto sighed, rolling onto his stomach before scooping the cat into his arms. “Wish I had your life, you don’t have to worry about being in love with your best friend or anything…”  
  
“Mrrow.”  
  
“Yeah, I know. I really should just tell him but I don’t wanna make things awkward between us, y’know?” That’s it. He was going crazy and going to his cat for advice, of all things.   
  
“Mrrph.”  
  
“I wish it was as easy to talk to him as it was to talk to him.. Why is it so hard to say ‘I love you, No—’” His eyes drifted as he watched Noctis return, clad only in his boxers and a towel around his neck. “—ow… get off the bed, I don’t want you getting fur all over the place!” _Sorry, Pochi!  
_  
“Hey, she can’t help it. Just like you can’t help smelling like a locker room.” Noctis teased, sitting down on the bed to dry his hair.  
  
Prompto gave a pout, shoving his friend lightly, “whatever! I’m gonna go shower.” He stood and grabbed a random t-shirt off the top of his dresser before making his way into the bathroom.  
  
Thankfully it didn’t seem like things were that weird between them, but who knows what might’ve happened if Noct walked in just a second later. 

Prompto decided to ignore the thought. Things were stressful enough as is.

The shower definitely helped him clear his head, but also gave him time to think. After arguing with himself for minutes, he finally came to a decision. He was going to tell Noctis the truth— or, at least tell him he was definitely _not_ straight, whichever came out easiest.  
  
…  
  
_Gods help him_ .  
  
Prompto spent a few minutes rehearsing, his words thankfully drowned out by the sounds of the shower. Once the water ran cold, he thought it was time. 

After drying off and changing into the t-shirt and briefs he brought into the bathroom with him, he stepped out and headed back into his room. Prompto never knew it was possible for his heart to beat so fast. Is this what having a panic attack is like? He felt as if he might pass out.

“H-hey, Noct? I have something to tell you,” Prompto spoke barely above a whisper, pushing the door open. No response. “...Noct?”

Much to both Prompto’s relief and disappointment, his friend had already fallen asleep.

A heavy sigh escaped him as he got into bed beside him, pulling the covers over himself. 

“Goodnight, Noct.” 

He’d just have to tell him in the morning.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> this originally started as a 1300 word drabble but i decided i hate myself so buckle up enjoy the ride


	2. Two Steps Back

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Things start to go downhill.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> ty again jord for reading thru xoxoxo  
> not super happy w how it turned out BUT hope yall enjoy anyway

Prompto was the first one up the next day, as usual. Despite being the Prince of Insomnia, Noctis sure didn’t have any trouble sleeping. 

He stretched his arms up and yawned, making small noises of satisfaction as his joints cracked. 

It was Saturday, so there really wasn’t a reason for him to be up this early, but the noises coming from the kitchen definitely piqued his interest. 

Prompto reluctantly pulled himself out of bed and walked out of his room, rubbing the sleep away from his eyes. “Pochi, is that—“ He glanced up. “Oh. Mom, Dad. Didn’t realize you were-“ he paused to yawn, “coming back so soon.”

“Morning, Promato.” His father laughed, “hopefully we didn’t ruin your beauty rest.”

 _Promato?_ He scrunched his nose at the new nickname. “Ugh, it’s like you’re on a mission to create the worst nickname possible. What kind of a nickname is Promato anyway?”

“It's a combination of Prompto and tomato.” His father responded rather proudly, “clever, no?” Prompto could only roll his eyes in response. 

“Don’t worry, Callisto, I thought it was _very_ clever.” His mother said, giving her husband a kiss on the forehead before turning to her son. “How was prom? Sorry we couldn’t see you off.”

“It was fine, don’t worry.” Prompto reassured them, looking over at the stove and the plate of bacon that was placed on top, swiping a piece for himself. Just as he was about to take a bite, he heard his bedroom door open and close. 

“G’morning, Prom.” Noctis yawned, glancing up at his friend, then at his friend’s parents. “Oh, hey Mr. Argentum, Mrs. Argentum.”

“I didn't realize you were here, Noctis. Are you going to stay for breakfast?” Prompto’s mother asked.

“Yeah I stayed the night, hope that’s okay.”

“Of course it’s alright, you’re no stranger here.” She nodded, “now go wash up and be quick before Prompto finishes it all.” 

”He gets his appetite from me.” His father commented, nodded his head thoughtfully.

“How? I thought you said I was adopted.” Prompto quipped back, swiping another piece of bacon from the tray.

“Spiritually, from me.”

Prompto laughed, walking over to take a seat beside his dad. It wasn’t often he got to see his parents given that they were always traveling for work, but he always enjoyed their company whenever they were around. 

Breakfast was pretty normal and ended with Prompto’s mother offering to drive Noctis back home, to which he accepted (despite how much he would’ve preferred to stay) and so, Prompto was left alone with his father for a bit. Not that he cared, they always exchanged interesting conversations with each other. 

This time, however, Prompto had a different type of conversation in mind. 

“Hey, Dad?” Prompto rubbed his hands together.

“Yes, Prompto?”

“How did you tell Mom that you liked her?”

His father raised a brow, glancing up from the magazine in his hands. “Why? Is there a special lady in your life I should know about?”

“Dad.”

“Is it someone I've met?”

“ _Dad.”_

“Alright, alright, I won’t pry.” His father set the magazine down and crossed one leg over the other as he thought, “well, we met in highschool in the journalism club. I was a sophomore, she was a senior, and I thought she was the most gorgeous gaI had ever seen. So, naturally I confessed to her right away and asked her out.”

“And?” 

“And… she said no, said she wasn’t interested in younger guys. But, that didn’t stop me. I knew she was the one the moment I laid eyes on her. So, when I saw her again in college, I begged her to give me another chance, she finally agreed and one thing led to another, and now we’ve been together for… almost twenty-seven years now.”

Prompto listened quietly as his father spoke, nodding along. “How’d you know? That she was the one?”

“You just know, Prompto. You just know.” 

He glanced down, awkwardly fiddling with his hands before pushing himself away from the table and standing. “I’m gonna go text Noct, see if he’s at his apartment yet.”  
“Alright,” his father raised a hand to pat Prompto on the back as he stood. “You know you can tell your Mother and I anything, right?”  
“I know.”  
“Just making sure.”  
  
Prompto made his way into his room and pulled his phone off the charger before sitting on the bed.  
  
|12:34pm| _Prompto:_ _  
_ _hey dude_ _  
_ _u back home yet?_ _  
_ _  
_Less than a minute later, a reply popped up.  
  
|12:35pm| _Noctis:_ _  
_ _yeah, just went inside_ _  
_ _thanks for letting me stay over btw i’ll give you your shirt back next time you come over_ _  
_ _  
_|12:35pm| _Prompto:_ _  
_ _dw about it dude!_ _  
_ _got any plans l8r?_ _  
_ _  
_|12:36pm| _Noctis:_ _  
_ _nah_ _  
_ _i did get invited to some parties though_ _  
_ _  
_|12:37pm| _Prompto:_ _  
_ _whaaat??? how come u got invited to parties and i didnt??????_ _  
_ _  
_|12:37pm| _Noctis:_ _  
_ _im the prince lol_ _  
_ _im pretty sure i just get invited cuz they want a ‘celebrity’ at the party for bragging rights_ _  
_ _  
_|12:38pm| _Prompto:_ _  
_ _oh right lol_ _  
_ _u gonna go to any?_ _  
_ _  
_|12:39pm| _Noctis:_ _  
_ _dunno. i dont wanna end up going and have it end up like yesterday did_ _  
_ _maybe if you came with me it wouldnt be so bad, at least id have someone to talk to_ _  
_ _  
_Prompto really wasn’t a party guy, but… _  
_ _  
_|12:42pm| _Prompto:_ _  
_ _yea sure ill go! anything 4 my best friend!!_ _  
_ _or well, actually maybe i should b more like_ _  
_ _~anything for the prince!~ lol *bows*_ _  
_ _  
_|12:43pm| _Noctis:_ _  
_ _oh shut up dude!_ _  
_ _anyway, theres one at 9 tonight, so ill see you at 8:30?_ _  
_ _only if you wanna come, i mean_ _  
  
_|12:45pm| _Prompto_ _  
_ _sounds good!! ill just let my parents know when my mom gets back_

Prompto set an alarm on his phone to remind himself to get ready later. Wait, what was he even supposed to wear? Would it be weird if he texted back to ask about a dress code? Maybe he was overthinking things.  
  
As he continued to overthink every little aspect of the party, he heard the front door open. His mom must’ve just gotten back. He pulled himself up and off the bed and back to where his parents were, rocking back and forth on the balls of his feet.  
  
“O’ dearest Mother and Father, may I perchance go to a party later today with my companion, Prince Noctis Lucis Caelum? Festivities begin at nine o’clock, but I can assure you I will be back at our humble abode before the curfew that you may or may not put in place.”  
  
“Hmm…” His father rubbed his chin in thought, glancing up at his wife, “what do you think?”  
  
“I don’t see why not, seeing as how he’s such a well-spoken young man.” His mother gave a soft smile, “as long as you’re back before midnight, okay?”  
“Yes ma’am!” 

“Do you need us to drive you?

“Nah, Noct’s picking me up!” 

His father mused at the sudden change in tone. “Just be careful, okay? Don’t do anything I wouldn’t do.” 

“So it’s okay if I—“

“Choose your next words very wisely.”

Prompto decided it would be best to hold his tongue. “Aaaanyway, thanks again! Promise I won’t do anything stupid!” He was, after all, just going to spend time with his friend.   
  


After planning and getting ready for what seemed to be hours, Prompto thought he was finally presentable… only to check the time and learn that it was only half past three. 

...Maybe he was a little _too_ excited to hang out with his friend.

But, maybe the fact that he got ready early was a good thing. He _did_ promise he’d tell Noct that he—

He… 

…

Why was it so difficult to say? It came to him so easily whenever he had dreams of holding his best friend’s hand or, Gods forgive, actually _kissing_ him (how scandalous!).

Maybe it would be a good idea to try and get some practice in— ahh, but what if his parents overheard? That would be bad… 

Prompto made a small noise of frustration and fell backwards onto his bed, blowing a lock of his hair out of his face.  
  
Maybe going off to college _was_ the best idea.  
  
Maybe he’d find some nice girl while there.  
  
Maybe they’d start dating.  
  
Maybe he’d forget about this stupid little crush.

_Maybe things would finally go back to normal._

Prompto looked over to his bedside table, eyes drifting downwards towards a pill bottle that had fallen over. Did he forget to take them today?

He reached his arm down to pick it up, staring at the words written on it.   
  


**ARGENTUM, PROMPTO**

PAROXETINE 20MG TAB  
  


TAKE ONE TABLET BY MOUTH EVERY DAY  
  
SWALLOW TABLET WHOLE. DO  
NOT CRUSH, BREAK, OR CHEW

  
QTY: 30

No Refills. Dr. Auth Required  
  


He held the bottle with his thumb and index finger then shook it, the remaining pills inside producing a soft, rhythmic rattle. It had been nearly three years since Prompto started taking them, despite insisting that he was fine and didn’t need them. Maybe he was right though, he did skip them today and felt no different than usual. It wouldn’t hurt to stop taking them for a few days, right?

Prompto drew his arm back and tossed the bottle at a pile of clothes in the corner of his room, making another rattle as it fell. Perhaps this is what he needed.  
The pills never did anything anyway.

He checked the time again and huffed in annoyance. “It’s only been fifteen minutes? Come on…”Maybe a nap would help pass the time.  
Prompto rolled over onto his side, his arms reaching to grab his chocobo plush and brought it to his chest. He squeezed it tightly and let his eyes slip closed… only to open them a minute later. He looked down at the plush in his arms, tilting his head down to take a sniff.  
  
It smelled like Noct— or more accurately, the cologne that he always wore a bit too much of. The smell must’ve rubbed off on it while Noctis was here.

He set the plush back in its place, determining that it would be impossible to sleep when literally everything seemed to remind him of Noct. 

This _sucked._

Prompto got off his bed and looked his room over, deducing that maybe it was about time he cleaned up a bit. That would help pass time, wouldn’t it?

After hours of cleaning, Prompto decided he was done. He seriously couldn’t remember the last time the place was _this_ clean- he even managed to get that weird stain off the wall. 

As he stood and admired his work, his phone went off. Ah shit- was he seriously cleaning for almost four hours? Thank Gods he got ready earlier. 

He picked up his phone and brought it up to his ear. “Noct?”

“Hey, I’m waiting outside!” Even just hearing his voice made Prompto’s heart skip a beat. 

“Okay, be out in a sec!”

At least it was finally time to go to the party. 

After saying a quick goodbye to both his parents, he ran out to greet his friend, staring in awe at the sight. 

“Holy shit dude,” Prompto walked up to the car and ran his hand along the top of one of the doors, “your dad really let you borrow the Regalia?!”

“Yeah. Cool, right?” Noctis pat the steering wheel, “wanna try driving?”

“No way! I’d probably be executed if I got even the tiniest little ding on it.” Prompto said, shaking his head before getting into the passenger’s seat.  
  
“You’re probably right,” his friend laughed, pulling out of the driveway, “don’t feel bad though, he’d probably kill me too.”  
  
Prompto nodded in agreement and looked out the window, “so, whose party are we going to anyway?”  
  
“Some guy I used to have class with, didn't know him too well.”  
  
At least it wasn’t anyone important.  
  
The rest of the car ride was pretty quiet, with neither of them saying much unless commenting on the current song that was playing on the radio. Noctis pulled into the driveway of the house the party was being held at and the duo stepped out, heading towards the door. 

Despite the fact that things were definitely quieter than prom was, they were just as overwhelming. 

“Is that Prince Noctis?” Prompto overheard someone ask.

“Looks like him.”

Not even a minute in and Noct was already the talk of the party. Prompto couldn’t fathom being that popular, ever. Not that he cared though.

“Hey, Prince Noctis!” The host trotted up to the both of them, “didn’t think you’d actually come!”

Before Noct could get a word in, he found himself being whisked off to join another conversation.

Well, it was fun while it lasted. 

Prompto breathed a heavy sigh and made his way towards the back. There were a handful of people standing by the snack table, but other than that it seemed like a pretty good place to hang around and wait for Noctis at. 

He glanced around the table, picking up a bag of chips to snack on as he waited. It probably would’ve been a good idea to eat before coming, but chips were better than nothing. 

A few people came up to him and they exchanged a few brief conversations, but it seemed like they were less interested in him and more interested in his relationship with Noct. Word got around that they were friends, he supposed. 

He checked the time and furrowed his brow, when was Noct gonna be back anyway? Didn’t he invite him along so they could hang out? This was the worst.

Prompto looked back at the snack table and picked up a plastic cup from the top of the stack, filling it with… whatever was in the bowl beside it, some kind of fruit punch, he assumed.

Whatever it was though, it was good— a little on the bitter side, but good. 

A few more minutes went by, and the more he thought about it, the less awful the party seemed. He helped himself to another cupful of punch and went to find some group to mingle with.

  
Suddenly half an hour had gone by and Prompto had no idea where it went, but _something_ must have happened, considering he was now sitting on the floor with what looked like a million and a half people surrounding and talking to him. 

Whatever, he felt really good and couldn’t care less about what was going on. 

“Yeaaah, and like… is’sa huge scam, I think.. like, you go to school, waste, like… four years of your life _minimum_ and then what? Work the rest of your life ‘til you die?” Prompto wasn’t exactly sure where this conversation came from, but he felt like— no, _needed_ to share his opinion. “I’m just goin’ ‘cause of— oh hey Noct!“ He waved his hand and carefully shifted to try and stand, only to decide it was probably better to stay sitting, at least, until the room decided to stop being all.. wobbly. 

“Prom? What the hell?” Noctis couldn’t be more confused. He pushed himself to the front of the crowd and grabbed him by the wrist to pull him up to his feet, “you’re drunk!”

“Me? Nah, nah, nah…” Prompto shook his head as he leaned on his friend for support, “I can’t be.. I don’ drink—” he whined in protest when Noctis took the cup from his hand, “hey, ask first!”  
  
Noctis took a sip from the cup, then looked back over at his clearly inebriated friend, “how many of these did you have?”  
  
“I dunno, three?”  
  
“Astrals, Prom.” Noctis set the cup down on a nearby table, “come on, let’s go get you some fresh air.”  
  
Despite his protests, Prompto allowed himself to be pulled outside, still mostly unsure of what was going on, exactly. All he knew was he just wanted to go back inside and keep talking to people.  
  
“How do you feel?” Noctis asked once outside, positioning Prompto by a tree in case he needed a place to lean on.  
  
“Mmm… dizzy? And like, I really wanna punch something…  
”  
“Prompto, please don’t punch anything.”  
  
“I’m gonna do it.”  
  
“Prom—” Before Noctis could stop him, Prompto turned to face the tree, reeled his arm back, and clenched his fist before punching it with what looked to be most, if not all, of whatever strength he currently had. “...That had to hurt.”  
  
Prompto brought his still clenched fist up to look at it, his knuckles now a painful looking red and bleeding slightly. “It’s kinda…” he shook his hand up and down as if that would magically make the pain go away, “ow.”  
  
“Prompto…” Noctis sighed. “Wait here, I’ll go get you some ice, then you’re going home.”  
  
What did he say? Home? Who’s home? Wow, his hand was _really_ starting to hurt now, why did he do that?  
  
Prompto decided to take a seat at the base of the tree as he waited for Noct to return with first aid.  
  
…  
  
Why was it taking so long? Did Noct forget?  
  
He forgot didn’t he.  
  
|10:47pm| _Prompto:_ _  
_ _ncot_ _  
_ _where r u i miss u_ _  
_ _:( :( :( :( :( :(_ _  
_ _  
_When did the screen get so blurry? What language was his keyboard even in?  
  
|10:50pm| _Prompto:_ _  
_ _noct pleas_ _  
_ _noct_ _  
_ _noct_ _  
_ _noct_ _  
_ _wait nvermind ujr here_ _  
_ _:)_ _  
_ _  
_He hadn’t noticed Noctis had been standing there for the past minute.  
  
“Give me your hand.” Noctis sighed, and knelt down, holding out his own hand for him.  
  
Prompto paused, staring at his friend’s hand before placing his into Noctis’. “Your hands are really warm.”  
  
“Okay, Prom.” Noctis laughed, placing a bag of ice on his injured hand. He couldn’t be mad at him for long.  
  
“Where are we going after this?”  
  
“I already told you, I’m taking you back to your house.”  
  
“I forgot.” Prompto frowned, “wait, home? I don’t wanna though.”  
  
“You’re drunk and you’re hurt. You’re going home.”  
  
“Nnnnooct…” He let out a long, drawn out whine, “what if my parents get maaaaaad.”  
  
“...Fine. You can’t stay here though,” Noctis pulled the bag of ice off his hand and wrapped it up with some bandages, “how do you feel now?”  
  
“I want chicken nuggets.”  
  
“Okay, we’ll get you chicken nuggets. How does your hand feel though?”  
  
“Better.”  
  
That was a relief, at least. Noctis stood and helped Prompto up, guiding him towards the Regalia. “I guess I can take you to my apartment… Just make sure you behave yourself, okay?”  
  
“Mhmmm.” Prompto leaned his head against Noctis’ shoulder as they walked back to the car, “you’re so nice, Noct.”  
  
“Why wouldn’t I be? You’re my best friend.”  
  
“Because I ruined the party for you…”  
  
“So? You’re more important than a stupid party.” He helped Prompto into the back seat and sat himself behind the wheel.  
  
Prompto kept rambling about random things during the ride to Noctis’ apartment, as well as reminding him to pick up some nuggets on the way there (to which Noct obliged) and continued to remind him even after getting them.  
  
Finally, after what seemed like way too long, they arrived at their destination. Noctis helped Prompto out of the car and up to the elevator, and finally to his apartment.  
“It smells like you.”  
  
“That makes sense, I live here.”  
  
“Oh yeah.” Prompto slowly made his way over to the couch and lied down on it, burying his face in one of the throw pillows.  
  
“I’m gonna go call your parents and let them know you’re staying here, okay?”  
  
Prompto didn’t respond, he had passed out almost as soon as his head hit the pillow. Noctis couldn’t blame him, it had been a long night for him.  
  
After a quick phone call, Noctis sighed and placed the food they had picked up onto the coffee table and shut off the lights, “night, Prom.”  
  
He really wasn’t looking forward to tomorrow.


	3. One Step Forward

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Two bros go on a fishing trip

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> yall know the drill. thank u jordz for proofreading ur the mvp *heart emoji*

So _this_ is what it was like to have a hangover, huh?

Prompto honestly couldn’t tell if he’d ever felt this awful before. His head felt as if it was going to explode and he wasn’t sure if he wanted to throw up or go back to sleep. Probably both. 

Despite everything, he managed to pull himself into a seated position and immediately wished he hadn’t. 

What time was it, even? 

He reached his hand down towards his back pocket, only to notice it was bandaged up, and now that he thought about it, it hurt. A lot. 

Prompto had way too many questions about what happened last night, but now was not the time to think about it. He wasn’t even sure if he was capable of thought without throwing up anyway. 

Wait, what was he doing? Oh— right, the time. Now if only he could find his pho… oh no. 

He glanced over the screen on his phone, groaning in annoyance. It was cracked because of course it was! It seemed as if his run of bad luck wasn’t going to end any time soon. Oh well, at least it still worked, he could definitely deal with a few cracks. 

Along with his phone, he fished out a few other trinkets that he had no recollection of ever picking up in the first place. The wadded up 1000 yen bill was a welcomed surprise, the three pebbles on the other hand just confused him, and… what’s this? Prompto cocked his head as he pulled out a small strip of paper and unfolded it. Seriously? On the paper, scribbled in red ink, was a phone number along with the words ‘call me! ;)’ beside it. This had to be a joke, Prompto wasn’t the kinda guy who got people’s numbers. Besides, he still had Noctis! For now, at least…

…

Maybe it would be a good idea to hold onto it, just in case. 

Just as Prompto slipped it back into his pocket, Noctis had walked into the room.

“Morning.”

Prompto murmured a ‘mmh,’ in response, shifting to lie back down when he feels another wave of nausea hit him. 

Noctis laughed and took a seat beside him, “can’t believe I woke up earlier than you did for once. Say, didn’t we make a bet about that a few months ago? Seems like you owe m— ow!” Prompto had kicked him with whatever strength he could muster. “Okay, okay! I get it, now’s not the time. Do you want some painkillers or something?”

“ _Please_.” Is the only thing Prompto managed to say before placing a hand over his mouth, sitting up, and darting towards the bathroom. A second later, he’s vomiting whatever his empty stomach had left in it. The bile burned his throat and left a sour, bitter taste on his tongue that lingered even after washing it out with water and a swig of mouthwash. He sank down to sit on the floor and rubbed his eyes, only looking back up when Noctis had tapped him on the shoulder.

“I take it you’ve never been hungover before?”

Prompto shook his head, taking both the painkillers and glass of water that his friend had handed him. “I don’t drink,” He pauses to take the medicine, “mainly ‘cause I can’t. Doc said it would mess with the medication I take.”

“Medication?” Noctis raises a brow at his response. This was the first he’s ever heard of Prompto being on anything. 

“Oh, uh..” Prompto glanced to the side and pinched the bridge of his nose when he feels his headache return. “It’s whatever,” he continued when the headache subsided enough for him to keep talking, “I’m not taking it anymore.”

Noctis knows he shouldn’t question him, but he does anyway. “What kinda medication?”

“Pills that make my dick hard,” Prompto rolled his eyes and moved to lie down on the floor. It’s probably not the cleanest place to rest, but the cold tile felt nice and helped with whatever aches he had. “Does it matter? I said I’m not taking them anymore, I’m fine.”

“I’ve shared a bed with you enough times to know you don’t have any problems with that.”

Prompto blushed and stretched a leg out, reminding Noctis that he is, in fact, within kicking range, “gross! Shut up!”

“I’m just joking around, Prom.” Noctis said, taking a step backwards in fear of the possibility of being kicked. “You gonna stay on the floor?” he asked, chuckling when Prompto nodded in response. “Alright, heads up though, Iggy said he’s gonna swing by in a bit.”

Prompto gave him another non-verbal response in the form of a thumbs up and Noctis turned to leave, deciding it would be a good idea to try and clean up a bit, lest Ignis decides to chew him out about it again. 

Eh, he decided to take the risk.   
  


At 11:30, Ignis arrived just as he promised. 

“Good morning, Noct,” He greeted the prince, handing over a large brown envelope, “here’s the briefing from yesterday’s meeting. Now, as I was saying on the phone—…” Ingis catches a glance of Prompto, “...good morning, Prompto. Is there any particular reason as to why you’re lying down on the bathroom floor?”

“Hey Iggy,” Prompto says, reaching one arm up to lazily wave at him, “we went to a party last night and now ’m hungover.”

“Hungo…” Ignis shot a glare at Noctis, “the king would go absolutely ballistic if he knew you went to a party with alcohol.”

“Hey, I didn’t have any! Besides, how was I supposed to know?” Noctis rolled his eyes, “I don’t know why he’d even care, I’m not a baby.”

“You know how he is.” Ignis shook his head, making his way into the kitchen, “I’ll keep quiet about this, for both his sake and yours. Now then, have you eaten yet?”

“I had a chocolate bar.” 

“Of course you did.” Ignis sighed, reaching for the apron hanging on the wall. “Should I prepare something for Prompto as well?”

Noctis turned to look at Prompto, who had since pulled himself off the floor and was trying to rinse the taste of bile out of his mouth again. “Yeah, why not.”

Ignis nodded and began to prepare breakfast, ignoring the groan that came out of the prince when he retrieved a carrot and some spinach from the fridge. 

“Tch, do you _really_ have to use that?”  
  
“You can either eat what I prepare or go hungry.”  
  
Noctis grunted in protest and moved to the couch, peeling the envelope open before pretending to read the report over.  
  
“Have you written back to Lady Lunafreya yet?”

“Haven’t had a chance to.” Noctis murmured, flipping to the next page, “I’ll… do it tomorrow.”

“Tomorrow? Is there an issue with doing it today?”

 _‘I don’t want to’_ Is what Noctis would’ve liked to say, but he had a hunch Ignis would just lecture him. “I’m going fishing.” He turned to look at Prompto, who had finally decided to leave the bathroom and was making his way over to the couch. “Prom, we’re going fishing.”

“I—uh, for what?”

“For… fish?”

“Oh, okay.” Prompto wasn’t entirely sure what was going on, but he agreed nonetheless. 

Ignis looked less than pleased, turning back to the meal he was making. Only after he had finished plating the breakfast he had prepared did he speak up again. “Very well. I’ll call you later tonight to discuss tomorrow’s agenda.” 

“Mhm.” Noctis stood to grab one of the plates, “C’ya, Iggy.”

“Bye Iggy!” Prompto joined in, staying seated until Ignis left. “So… why are we going fishing?”

“I just need an excuse not to get stuff done.”

“Mm.” Prompto nods, watching as Noctis meticulously began to pick out the vegetables from his meal, “I’ve never fished before.”

“I can show you, if you want.” Noctis offered, taking a bite of his food when he deemed it ‘safe’. “Are you feeling any better, by the way?”  
“Uh-huh. Or, well, I don’t feel like my brain’s gonna leak outta my ears anymore.” 

Noctis pushed the second plate towards him, “breakfast?”

He hummed and thought it over for a moment, then pulled the plate closer towards himself, “yeah okay, why not.” He stuck a forkful into his mouth, “mmh~ Man, you’re so lucky you have someone to cook for you like this, it’s so good~”

“I thought you could cook though?”

“Mm…” He stuck another forkful of food into his mouth, swallowing it before speaking again, “I sorta can, but it’s not the same! It just tastes better when someone else makes something for you.”

“Guess you’re right.” Noctis agreed, “hey, if you like Iggy’s food so much you should just move in with me. He’s always here making _something_.”

Prompto nearly chokes at the proposition and coughs, “w-what? F-fat chance! You’d just use me to eat your vegetables for you!”

“Aha, was it that obvious?”

Prompto stuck his tongue out and finished the rest of his breakfast, pushed the empty plate 

away and sighed contentedly. ”Whatever! Anyway, when did you wanna go fishing?”

Noctis thought about it for a second, then checked his phone, “now? AnglerZone says they’re biting pretty well at a few spots.”

“AnglerZone?” Prompto couldn’t help but laugh at the name, “sounds good! Can we swing by my place first though? I wanna grab my camera— and shower, I feel gross.”

Noctis nodded in agreement, holding back any snarky comments about how he smells gross too.

After cleaning up a bit, the two headed off. 

Noctis spoke about the various kinds of tackle and the what difference each lure made, and Prompto, despite not knowing or understanding much, listened anyway. Maybe if Noct taught all his classes, he’d pay attention to those too.

He mused at the thought and had completely blanked out until Noctis pulled up in front of his house. 

“Oh, thanks! I’ll be back in a jiffy!” Prompto promises, heading inside. He’s thankful that he feels _mostly_ normal, otherwise lying to his parents would be a lot tougher.

“Hey Mom, Dad.” Prompto tried to make it to his room as quick as possibly, only to be stopped when his father spoke. 

“Prompto, can you come here for a second?”  
  
“Aaah… Noct has the car running, I kinda gotta be quick—”  
  
“It’ll just be a minute.”  
  
Prompto reluctantly took a seat beside his parents on the couch, fidgeting with the wristband on his right hand.  
  
“Are you alright?” His mother asked, “Noctis said that you weren’t feeling well.”  
  
“H-huh? Yeah, I’m fine!” Prompto swallowed nervously, “I was just _suuuuper_ tired and uh..”  
  
“Prompto.” His father’s tone was more serious than usual.  
  
“Fine! Fine, I just, ah..” He began fidgeting with his wristband again, “I… mmm... drank..? A little too much— it was by accident though! I thought it was just juice, I swear.”  
  
“Didn’t I say not to do anything stupid?” His father sighed and shook his head.  
  
“Actually you said not to do anything you wouldn’t do.”  
  
His mother shrugged when her husband looked towards her, “he’s right, you know. Regardless, Prompto, we’re just worried about you.”  
  
“I’m not a kid.”  
  
“We know, but we’re still your parents.”  
  
“Yeah, well…” Prompto pulled himself up off the couch when he had nothing else to say, “I’m gonna go shower.”  
  
“Alright, don’t forget to take your—”  
  
“I know, I know.” He waved his hand dismissively. He knew his parents were just being, well… parents, but maybe they were just a bit _too_ protective of him. He was eighteen and heading off to college soon, after all.

  
Prompto pulled his shirt off and tossed it on the floor, the rest of his clothes soon joining it in a messy pile. He looked at himself in the mirror and ran his hand over the stretch marks on his stomach. Looking at himself like this made him feel sick, but he just assumed it was because of his still-present hangover. 

As he thought about it, he felt the sharp pang of a headache hit him, so he decided to take another dose of painkillers from the medicine cabinet despite knowing it hadn’t been nearly long enough. He slowly chewed the pills and swallowed, rinsing out the bitter taste with tap water afterwards.  
The pain faded as he showered and he sighed in relief. Good, this was one less thing for him to worry about.  
  
Prompto showered just long enough to wash away the gross feeling he had and dried himself off after getting out. He went into his room and got dressed in the first thing he grabbed, swiped his camera off the dresser, and ran back out after saying a quick ‘bye!’ to his parents.  
  
“Hey,” Prompto said, getting back in the car, “sorry ‘bout the wait, parents wanted to talk.”  
  
“Aren't you a bit too old to learn about the birds and the bees?”  
  
Prompto rolled his eyes at the comment and jabbed him in the side.

  
The conversation they had on the drive to the lake did a good job taking Prompto’s mind off the sharp pains that came and went in random intervals, the scenery helped a bit too.  
  
“I don’t think I’ve ever been here,” He said, bringing his camera up to snap a photo of the lake when they pulled up beside it.  
  
“It’s kinda outta the way, guess that’s why it's such a prime fishing spot too.” Noctis shrugs. He got out of the car and pulled out his tackle box and two fishing rods from the back seat, turning his head when he heard the camera go off again, this time pointed at him, “if you’re gonna take more pictures, make sure you get my good side.”  
  
“Why? D’ya wanna send ‘em to your girlfriend?” Prompto snickered, getting out of the car to join Noctis by the edge of the water.  
  
Noctis raised a brow, “girlfriend? You mean Luna? She’s just a friend.”  
  
“Do you like her?”  
  
“...I guess? I haven’t seen her in like, a decade.”  
  
“Mm.” Prompto nodded, deciding it would be best if he didn’t think about it. He kicked his shoes off and stuck his socks in them before dipping his feet into the water as he sat down, “show me how it’s done!”  
  
Noctis attached a lure to one of the rods and cast it, taking a seat beside Prompto, who seemed less than impressed.  
  
“That’s it?”  
  
“For now, yeah.”  
  
Prompto couldn’t wrap his head around the idea of this being fun. At least he was able to take a few pictures to pass the time.  
  
Fifteen minutes passed and he began to feel bored. “...Is your fishing app working right? Maybe the other people on it are lying and keeping all the fish for themselves.”  
“You just have to be patient, Prom.” Noctis laughs, deciding to set up another fishing rod, “wanna try?”  
  
“And risk missing out on a photo? No thanks!” Prompto readied his camera when he saw the bobber on the first fishing rod dip down below the surface, “wait wait wait, look!”  
  
“I see it.” Noctis reached for the rod, giving it a few tugs. It didn’t feel too big, but a fish is a fish. He began to reel it in and his suspicions were confirmed when the only thing on the line is a small bluegill.  
  
“Wow, look at that sea monster,” Prompto teased, taking a photo of Noctis holding it regardless, “what do you do with them anyway?”  
  
“I just catch and release,” Noctis shrugged, doing as he said.  
  
“...What’s the point then?”  
  
“It’s just fun, you’d understand if you actually tried it.”  
  
Prompto refused the offer yet again, unsure if his headache would allow for it even if he wanted to.

  
The next few hours went by without much action and Noctis decided to switch to another lure, the rod making another ‘fwip!’ as its cast again.  
“Think Luna likes to fish?” Prompto asked as he continued to watch.  
  
“Dunno, why do you ask?”  
  
“Just curious.”  
  
“You’re asking about her a lot more than usual,” Noctis commented with a hum, “are you sure _you’re_ not the one that likes her?”  
  
“I’ve never even met her!” Prompto quickly responded, a light blush on his face. “All I know about her is that she has the cutest dog… How’s Tiny— I mean, Pryna doing, anyway?”  
  
“Okay I guess. I don’t see her much.” Noctis shrugged, recasting the line, “Umbra’s the one bringing me the notebook.”  
  
“That’s kinda cute, the notebook, I mean.”  
  
“Never pinned you as the romantic type, Prom. Your future girlfriend sure is lucky.” Noctis nodded his head, “bet you’ll meet someone real nice while you’re off at college.”  
  
“Y-yeah.” Prompto’s not sure why, but the comment makes his heart sink. No, he definitely knows why. He stays quiet for a few minutes, before speaking up, “...does it have to be a girlfriend?”  
  
“What?”  
  
“I-I mean,” Prompto swallowed, fidgeting with his wristband, “w-what if... “ His heart was beating too fast. He should’ve stayed quiet, but it’s too late now. “I… like… guys? A-and girls, b-but…” He couldn’t stop himself from stuttering and he felt like an idiot, “I-I’m.. bisexual?” Prompto felt his eyes water and he brought his hand up to wipe the oncoming tears away, “f-fuck, i’m sorry.” He’s absolutely sure Noctis was about to get up and leave, but he doesn’t. Instead, his friend scooted closer, and hugged him.  
  
“Hey, hey. Don’t cry.”  
  
Despite Noctis’ attempts to comfort him, Prompto can’t hold back the tears well enough. They streamed down his face and soaked into Noctis’ shirt when Prompto buried his face in his chest.  
  
It took a while for Prompto to calm down, and Noctis didn’t let go until he was ready.  
  
“Y-you’re not mad?” Prompto asked when he’d finally managed to stop his tears enough to speak and pulled away from his friend.  
  
“Why would I be mad? We’ve been friends since like, forever, you really think I’d drop you just because you like guys?”  
  
Prompto shrugged. It felt stupid, now that he thought about it.  
  
“Do your parents know?” Noctis asked a minute later, and Prompto shook his head.  
  
“You’re the only person I’ve told.”  
  
Noctis nodded in understanding and gave him another hug.  
  
“...Noct? T-thanks, for everything.” Prompto wiped his eyes again and pulled back, standing up. It felt as if a thousand pound weight was lifted off his chest and he could finally breathe easily. “Can… you show me how you’re supposed to cast the line? I wanna give it a try.”  
  
Noctis stood up and nodded, a soft smile spread across his face, “yeah, of course.”

  
It looked like things were finally looking up for him. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> not to be a loser but i actually got a little emotional while writing this


	4. Inhibitions

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> wuh woh!
> 
> TW- thoughts of self harm

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> hey gamers hope you're all doin good. i was gonna post this on the 25th for prompto's bday but my friend only just finished proofreading so . lil late but its fine  
> ratings been bumped up to mature!

The day before couldn’t have gone better— or well, maybe it could’ve, but baby steps were important too, Prompto told himself.

If only the next day started as good as the last ended. 

Prompto couldn’t describe how he felt when he woke up the next morning in any way other than ‘bad’. He just assumed it was just the start of a cold and didn’t think much of it. He used the day to sleep it off, hoping he’d be better in the morning.

He was not better in the morning.

Prompto felt just as bad as he did the previous day, if not worse. His headaches were more frequent and his chest felt heavy, but at least he didn’t have anything to do this week. Normally he’d be hanging out with Noctis, but the Prince was swamped with meetings that were too important for him to skip out on. Perhaps it was for the best, though. The last thing Prompto wanted was for his friend to catch whatever he had going on.

This went on for the next few days, with each day worse than the last. His parents assumed it was just the flu, however after a bit of research online, Prompto figured they were just withdrawal symptoms that would soon pass— or so he hoped.

Aside from feeling like absolute garbage, Prompto noticed a few other things since he stopped taking his medication. 

There were the headaches, of course, which seemed to be getting worse by the day and were sometimes bad enough to make him puke.

His energy had decreased immensely. Normally he’d go out for a jog if the weather was nice, or at least walk to his friend’s house to hang out, but now he barely even had the energy to get out of bed. His appetite had also plummeted. Prompto, the guy who could put away three burgers without even thinking, could barely stomach a piece of fruit on a good day lately. Even if he did manage to eat something, it wouldn’t stay down for long.  
But most annoying of all, his libido had gone through the roof. At first, Prompto didn’t mind much. He had all the time in the world to deal with anything that came up but after a few days, he realized that he was really, really tired of masturbating.

Maybe it was a good thing he stopped talking to Noct— at least, for the time being.

Thankfully, Pochi was there to keep him company.

The cat was a regular visitor and often snuck in through his bedroom window to eat whatever leftovers he had, before snuggling up beside him under the covers. 

“Hey Pochi.” Prompto murmured in greeting when the cat once again came in through his open window, “looking for this?” He sat up and picked up his untouched sandwich from earlier in the day and pulled off a piece of meat, holding it out towards the cat. Pochi happily took the offering and rubbed up against Prompto to ask for more. 

“Yeah, yeah, knock yourself out.” Prompto set the plate down for her and sighed. At least it wasn’t going to waste. He decided to let the cat eat in peace and rolled onto his side, reaching for his phone when he heard it go off.

**Incoming call from  
Noctis**

His finger hovered over the decline button, only to set his phone back down to let it go to voicemail instead. A moment later, a text notification popped up. 

|3:12pm| _Noctis:  
hey prom. i just wanted to know if you were okay.  
wanna hang out? i’m free now _

Prompto paused to read the message, then unlocked his phone to reply.

|3:15pm| _Prompto:  
i still don’t feel well srry dude _

|3:16pm| _Noctis:  
still? are you sure you’ll be better by tomorrow? it would be super shitty if you had to miss graduation_

|3:20pm| _Prompto:  
dw i’ll be ok   
gonna go take a nap ttyl noct_

|3:21pm| _Noctis:  
alright  
sleep well_

|3:27pm| _Prompto:  
zzzzzzzz_

Right, graduation… he almost forgot. Prompto wasn’t really sure if he cared about it or not, but his parents were excited for the event— not to mention they cleared their work schedule for this, it would be a shame for him not to attend. Hopefully whatever was going on with him would pass by then.

“I’m gonna go take a shower.” He announced to Pochi before setting his phone to the side and making his way into the bathroom. 

Prompto couldn’t remember the last time he had a shower. He already felt gross, no need to be physically gross too. He stripped and set his clothes down on the edge of the sink and stepped into the shower. 

By the time he was finished and finally got out, the water had begun to run cold. Prompto stepped out and lazily dried himself off, not bothering to grab a spare change of clothes and instead put his old ones back on. It was probably counterproductive, but he didn’t really care. 

He stood in front of the sink and stared at his fogged up reflection, bringing his hand up to wipe away the condensation, only to pause when he saw the back of his hand. Staring back at him was that big, bold, ugly barcode that he absolutely despised. His parents never told him what it was and Prompto always assumed that meant it was either really bad, or they didn’t know either. Regardless of what it was, be it good or bad, he always kept it covered up and pretended it wasn’t there. 

Yet now, it was the only thing he could think about.

Prompto moved his other hand to the barcode and dug his nails into the skin, repeatedly scratching up and down as if that would remove it, but all it did was leave his hand red and sore. 

He frowned and pulled the sink drawer open, taking out the pair of scissors his family kept in it and pressed the blade up against the mark, pressing down ever so slightly. 

This was a bad idea. 

Prompto made a small noise of frustration and quickly moved the scissors away from his hand and up to his hair. He snipped at it piece by piece until he thought it was enough and stared at his reflection in the mirror when he was finished. 

It wasn’t… terrible. Not good, but definitely not the worst thing he could’ve done. 

As he began to clean up, a small bead of red dripped onto the white porcelain of the sink. 

“Seriously?” 

Prompto glanced at himself in the mirror, spotting a thin red line above his brow. He assumed he managed to somehow nick himself while cutting his hair. 

He huffed in annoyance and wiped the blood off his brow with his thumb, sticking a bandage over top of his cut before leaving the bathroom to head back to his room.

He saw his phone screen continuously light up and then off, followed by the sound of a notification pinging and upon checking his phone, he found a plethora of texts from his friend. He flipped through the messages as he pulled some clean clothes on, biting the inside of his lip as he read. 

|3:57pm| _Noctis:  
you up yet?_

|3:58pm| _Noctis:  
ignis wants to know if i should bring you some soup to make you feel better. _

|4:00pm| _Noctis:  
prom.   
prom.   
prompto. _

|4:02pm| _Noctis:  
i’m coming over to bring you soup. _

What?! No— arg!

Prompto quickly texted a response back. 

|4:03pm| _Prompto:  
huh???? u don’t have to!! what if u catch my cold???? _

|4:04pm| _Noctis:  
ill take the risk_

|4:04pm| _Prompto:  
noct!! _

|4:05pm| _Noctis:  
Auto Reply: My “Do Not Disturb While Driving” is turned on. Text you when I’m finishing driving.  
(I’m not receiving notifications. If this is urgent, reply “urgent” to send a notification through with your original message.)_

So much for trying to get him to keep his distance.

...At least he showered. 

It felt like ages until the doorbell rang. Prompto opted to let his parents answer it, hoping it would give him at least a little bit of time to… he wasn’t even sure. 

He got into bed and looked off to the side when he heard the unmistakable voice of Noctis and his parents talking in the other room, followed by footsteps getting closer to his door. 

“Hey,” Noctis began shutting the door behind him.

“Hey.” Prompto returned quietly, turning his gaze towards his friend.

“You look like shit.”

“I feel like shit.” His attention quickly got caught by the bag in Noctis’ hand, “what’s that?”

“Soup,” the answer made Prompto frown, “and a present.”

Present? He definitely had his attention now, “present? My birthday isn't until October dude.”

“I know, just thought it might cheer you up.” Noctis held the bag out but quickly pulled it back, “gotta eat first.”

Prompto frowned, “I’m not hungry.”

“Guess you won’t be getting it then, huh?” Noctis pulled the container of soup from the bag along with a plastic spoon and pushed it towards his friend, who accepted it rather unenthusiastically.

Prompto hesitantly popped the lid off and dipped the spoon in, stirring idly as he watched Noctis take a seat at his desk, spinning around in his office chair to face him. The awkward silence between them was only broken by the sound of Noctis tapping his foot.

“...How come you’ve been ignoring me?”

“W-what?” Prompto nearly choked, “I’ve been sick-”

“That hasn’t stopped you from wanting to hang out before.” Noctis didn’t seem mad, but Prompto couldn’t help but worry anyway. “Last time you were sick you were puking your guts out and still begged to hang out. I just wanna know if I messed up somewhere, you seemed pretty happy during our fishing trip, so I’m just… confused.”

“It’s nothing like that, I just…” Prompto shrugged and silenced himself with a spoonful of soup. 

Noctis decided not to pry and got up, turning to clean some of the clutter off the desk. “Your room’s a mess.”

“Look who’s talking,” Prompto scoffed, “if you didn’t have Iggy you’d probably be swimming in trash!”

“Tch-“ Noctis rolled his eyes and bent down to pick up some of the clothes on the floor. “You’ve got a laundry basket right there, you don’t have to throw them onto the ground.” As he lifted up the pile of clothes and turned to place them where they belonged, but was distracted by a rattling sound as something fell to the floor. He cocked his head and dropped the clothes into the basket before picking up the pill bottle.

“Ah, that’s—“ Prompto was quickly cut off before he could continue. 

“You should probably take these, says once a day. What are they, anyway?” Noctis asked, reading the label. 

“I already took them!”

“Oh yeah? How come they were in a pile of clothes?”

“T-they must’ve gotten knocked off my desk.”

“It wasn’t anywhere near your desk.”

“Whatever! I didn’t realize you were a detective now.” Prompto reached his hand out towards Noctis, “can you just give me that?”

His friend gave one last look at the bottle before handing it over, taking another look around the room. It was still in as big of a mess as it was before, but he couldn’t be bothered to clean anymore. “Hey, we should go for a walk.”

“A walk?” Prompto placed the pill bottle on his bed and frowned, “but I’m sick?”

“Fresh air’s good for you, c’mon.”

At least he wouldn’t have to finish eating, he was starting to feel a bit nauseous anyway. “Fine, fine. But uh,” Prompto reached out towards the bag with his gift in it, “what about this?”

The bag was quickly snatched up by Noctis who placed it on the desk, “later.” 

Prompto pouted and got off his bed, quietly pulling on a jacket and his shoes before leaving with Noct, who brought the bag along for some reason. What was even in there?

The first couple of minutes of their walk was filled with nothing but silence. They were both probably thinking the same thing, but neither wanted to say anything. 

Noctis had his phone in his hand, looking up from it every so often to make sure he didn’t stumble or bump into anything. Another few minutes later, he stopped walking and put his phone into his pocket. 

“How come you didn’t tell me you were on antidepressants?”

Prompto’s eyes grew wide, “I’m n—“

“I looked it up. Those pills you had in your room, it says they’re for that.” 

“Because i’m not on them! I stopped taking them so leave me alone.”

“Yeah? And how’s that been working out for you?”

Prompto exhaled sharply and looked away, “...Gonna be honest, this is the worst I’ve felt in a long, long time.”

“Yeah, I can tell.” Noctis sighed, “I’m not mad I just wanna know why, it’s not like it was hurting you.”

Prompto shrugged, refusing to make eye contact. “I don’t know, I didn’t think I needed them. I felt… pretty decent? So I just…” he shrugged again. 

“You felt decent because you were taking them.”

“Y-yeah, I realize that now.” Prompto gave his best attempt at a laugh, but all he could manage was a quiet, choked exhale.

“You gotta start taking them again, what if you just keep getting worse, huh? I don’t even wanna think about it but what if you… you know! Gods, Prom, You’re my best friend. I don’t know what I do if you just disappeared one day.” Noctis glanced up when he heard a sniffle come from Prompto, “w-whoa, don’t cry— I didn’t mean to make you upset—“ 

“I-it’s not your fault I-I just… I’m so stupid… s-shit..” He felt pathetic for crying again, but he couldn’t help it. 

“You’re not stupid, everyone makes mistakes,” Noctis reassured him, placing a hand on his back to try and calm him down, but Prompto quickly turned to hug him instead. Noct let him hold on and gather himself, patting his back when Prompto finally pulled away, wiping his eyes on the sleeve of his jacket. “Feeling better?”

Prompto nodded, tilting his head in confusion when Noctis held out the gift bag towards him, “w-what’s this for? I don’t think I deserve it after all this—“

“Just take it.”

Prompto hesitantly took the bag from him and pulled out the box that was inside of it, his eyes widening, “y-you’re joking-“ In his hands he held a camera box. The same model Prompto had been raving about for months now, he couldn’t believe Noctis remembered… “I… can’t take this... I really appreciate it but, it’s too expensive, you really didn’t need to do this—“

“I know, that’s why me and the guys got it for you. Figured you could use it while you’re away in college. I was supposed to wait until after graduation to give you this, but I thought it might cheer you up.”

“How- how did you even get this? I thought it wasn’t supposed to come out for another week?” 

“Being a prince has its perks, I guess.”

Prompto gave him another hug, “you’re the best... now, um…” he stepped back and opened the box, “can we go back now? I wanna pop some batteries in this and take it for a spin!”

Noctis chuckled lightheartedly “yeah, after you take your meds.

“Yeah, yeah! I know.”

"Oh, and Prom?" He said with a smirk, "nice haircut."'

“Shut up, dude!”

Everything seemed to be back to normal in the following days— or, mostly normal, he was still recovering from the whole ordeal, after all.   
Graduation was… less than exciting and absolutely nothing like Prompto had expected. All those shows and movies really hyped it up a lot more than it deserved to be in his opinion.

Still, he did it and hell, he was proud of it. His parents seemed to be pretty proud as well— or, at least he thought they were proud. It was hard to tell because of how far away they were, but Prompto was pretty sure he saw his dad crying— twice.

His parents left the following day, Altissia, maybe? Prompto didn’t really remember where. Sure, he wished they would’ve stayed a few days longer, but, work was work. 

The house was quiet. Really, really quiet. Sure, this was practically the norm for him and he had Pochi to keep him company, but he couldn’t help but feel lonely.

Then, Noctis called and invited him on a camping trip. How could he say no?

It’s not like anything bad could happen on a camping trip.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> idk what else to put here but my new friend told me to listen to heart attack by loona saying it has promptis vibes so i did even tho i dont know anything abt kpop and um um um anyway stan loona.  
> follow me on twitter @gavvinners


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